


Time Stamp: I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

by SupernaturalPrincess9



Series: It's Never Too Late [4]
Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, First Christmas, Future Fic, M/M, Schmoop, non-au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-09 08:13:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5532173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SupernaturalPrincess9/pseuds/SupernaturalPrincess9
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jared and Jensen spend their first Christmas together as a couple in December 2018. They take steps to repair their friendships with their former wives. And maybe, they fall in love all over again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Time Stamp: I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: this a time stamp for the story "It's Never Too Late". If you haven't read that story, there may be parts of this one that don't entirely make sense. Mostly, though, I think if you start with the premise that Jared and Jensen left their wives right after Supernatural ended, the story can stand alone.

Jensen slowly opened his eyes and stretched as he emerged from sleep. He could immediately tell that Jared wasn’t in bed with him, so he rolled over and grabbed his phone off the nightstand to look at the time. It was only 7:30 AM, which was pretty early for Jared to be up since they’d been up past 2:00 AM.

Jensen rolled onto his back with a yawn that ended in a smile. He closed his eyes and grinned as he thought about the previous night. He and Jared had gone to Jared’s former house to celebrate Christmas Eve with the girls and kids. 

Gen and Danneel had put up an enormous tree the weekend after Thanksgiving with Jensen and Jared’s help. It was seriously the biggest Christmas tree Jensen had ever seen. Even bigger than the one he and Jared had downstairs, and that was saying something. Underneath the tree had been a ridiculous amount of presents for the kids. There were also a few for the adults, which they’d opened together after the exhausted kids had gone to bed.

Jensen recalled Danneel’s reaction when she had opened his gift to her. He’d had the ranch retitled with her as the sole owner of the property so it would always be hers. She’d get more when the divorce was final, but for now, she had a real place that was all her own. When she read over the documentation he’d placed a flat box he’d gift wrapped, her face had broken into a wide smile. For the first time since the evening he’d left their condo to go to the wrap party, she’d given him a real hug.

When Gen had opened her present from Jared, she was a little underwhelmed at first.

“Jared, I love the pictures of these horses. Andalusians, right? I’ve always wanted one of those. Oh… and a Gypsy Vanner. Beautiful.” Gen had said tentatively. “I’ll find a place for them, maybe in the office?”

Jared had smiled at her. “Not sure they’ll fit in there. Just don’t forget to feed them.”

“What?” Gen had asked, her face a mask of confusion.

“Open the other box.” Jared had suggested with a bigger smile on his face.

When Gen opened the second box, her face went from mask of confusion to full of delight. “Are you serious!” Gen had screamed. “Oh my god! Jared!”

Within the box was a title to a ranch and the registration papers for all four horses. Gen had looked at Jared with tears in her eyes. “Jared… I can’t believe… oh my god…”

When Gen had run to Jared, he had given her a tight hug. “The ranch is right next to Danneel’s. It’s all set up for horses, so I got you a few to start.”

Gen had wiped her eyes as they pulled apart. “Thank you, Jared. Really… I’ve missed riding so much…”

Jared had smiled down at Gen. “I know. You sacrificed a lot to give our kids a good life… and I just wanted to give you some of it back.”

Gen had turned from Jared with a wistful look on her face. Some days it was harder than others to accept that the life she used to have was over. But times like these helped her get through the low days.

Danneel had made a scrapbook for Jensen with original artwork by their daughter. Jensen had been thrilled with the gift. It was clear it had taken Danneel a long time to assemble it. He thanked her profusely and she had given him an authentic smile that actually reached her eyes. Jensen was happy with the small wins as they figured out how to be friends again.

Gen’s gift to Jared was also a scrapbook, but it was full of professional shots of the boys over the years; essentially a catalogue from their births to the present day. Jared had hugged it to him as he thanked Gen for her thoughtfulness.

Before they left, Jared and Jensen each took a bite out of the Christmas cookies the kids had left for Santa. Tom suspected Santa was really his parents, but the other two kids were still very much believers, so the adults still went through the annual ruse.

Jensen stretched again before burrowing under the covers. He and Jared had agreed that they’d save their presents to one another for Christmas morning. Jensen suspected that Jared was downstairs doing some last minute wrapping because he had a tendency to procrastinate.

Jensen put his face by Jared’s pillow and breathed in. He could smell Jared all around him and it filled him with a happiness he didn’t have the words to describe. Jensen pulled Jared’s pillow to him, taking in his scent. He smiled to himself when he thought about how they’d come home last night and had spent hours making love before falling asleep, totally entwined, in their bed.

Jensen’s musings were interrupted by Jared’s sudden appearance in the doorway. He was wearing nothing but his SAXX boxer-briefs – in red, of course – for the holiday, a Santa Hat, and a big dimply smile. In his hands he held two mugs of something steaming.

“Hot chocolate for my hottie!” Jared announced as he walked to the bed and set the mugs on the nightstand on his side. He leaned down and kissed Jensen softly. “Merry Christmas, baby.”

“Mmmm…” Jensen hummed as Jared leaned back. “More.”

Jared smiled and kissed Jensen again. “Better?”

“More.” Jensen said in a tiny little voice, making Jared laugh.

Jared kissed Jensen, longer this time. When he began to pull away, he whispered, “Better?”

“One more.” Jensen playfully begged, his eyes sparkling with laughter.

Jared gathered Jensen in his arms and kissed him deeply, taking his time, pouring his love into the way he caressed Jensen’s lips with his own. After several minutes, he slowed the kiss and then ended it with a series of soft kisses across Jensen’s lower lip. 

“Better?” Jared whispered with a smile.

A sleepy Jensen smiled up at Jared. “Better.”

Jared helped Jensen into a sitting position and handed him his hot chocolate. Jensen looked in the mug and saw all the marshmallows Jared had put in it for him. He smiled at Jared. “Just the way I like it. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, babe.” Jared said as he took a sip of his own hot chocolate.

They drank in silence for a minute, thankful for everything they had this Christmas.

Jared took one last, long draw of his drink and put the empty mug on the nightstand. “You ready for presents?”

Jensen licked hot chocolate from his upper lip. “Yep!”

Jared took his mug and then his hand and helped Jensen up. “Shower first?”

Jensen agreed. Twenty minutes later, they were dressed in jeans and t-shirts. Jared had his Santa Hat back on his head at a decidedly jaunty angle. He also had one for Jensen, whom he kissed as he put it on his head. Jared grabbed Jensen’s hand and led him downstairs and into the great room where they’d set up the tree.

Jared had candles everywhere and all the holiday lights were on. In the background he had Jason Mann’s Volume II of Christmas With Friends playing. Jensen saw that a few presents had been added around the tree. As he looked at the packages, he laughed because Jared’s wrapping of items was just so… Jared.

Jared led Jensen to the sofa, indicating that he should sit. Jensen sat and watched fondly as Jared brought him his first gift. It was shaped a lot like a putter. Jared’s wrapping was a bit esoteric and concealed nothing about the gift. He did have a bow artfully placed on the face of the putter, which made Jensen smile.

Jensen took the gift from his hands and shook it. “Hmmm… no sound.”

Jared laughed and shook his head.

Jensen turned the gift over and around. He sniffed it, making Jared laugh harder. Finally Jensen gave a big sigh. “I just have no idea what this is…”

Jared kissed Jensen quickly. “Open it.”

Jensen began the tedious work of unwrapping his gift. Jared liked to use a lot of tape. Finally, the wrapping off, Jensen looked at his new Scotty Cameron X7 putter and smiled broadly. “Jared! You know I’ve wanted one of these forever. Thank you.”

Jared clapped and ran to get another present. This one looked suspiciously like a vacuum cleaner… but surely…

Jared set the gift down in front of Jensen. “Ok… this one is from Sam to Dean.”

Jensen laughed until he really thought about what Jared was saying. “Wait…” he quickly unwrapped what was indeed a Dyson rollerball vacuum cleaner. “Sam got this for Dean because…”

Jared’s eyes were filled with mirth. 

“Because… Dean’s a nelly bottom and a 1950s house wife!” Jared shouted with glee.

Jensen stood up. “You’re gonna pay for that, Padalecki.”

Jared turned around and wiggled his butt at Jensen. “Make me, Ackles!”

Jensen ran after Jared, losing his Santa Hat in the process. Jared let him catch him by the island in the kitchen, where Jensen pulled him into his arms and kissed him until he was breathless. He whispered, “You know, Jared… I seem to remember sliding deep inside you last night… multiple times.”

Jared bit his lip and gave Jensen a saucy look. “Yes… but that’s Jared letting Jensen inside of him… not Sam and Dean.”

Jensen barked out a laugh as Jared spun away. “This is the fourth time you’ve referred to Sam and Dean when it comes to sex. You know if you really want to role play…”

Jared stepped up to Jensen and kissed his neck. He moved his lips next to Jensen’s ear. “Oh yeah… I really wanna role play. But not right now… I want you to open more gifts.”

Jensen felt himself begin to respond to the sexiness of Jared’s voice. He tried to adjust himself without Jared noticing but it was futile. Jared’s lips spread into a slow smile. 

“I knew a little Sam-n-Dean role play would turn you on.” Jared paused and considered a mid-present-opening break for a blow job and then decided there’d be time later so he grabbed Jensen’s hand and led him back to the couch.

“Next!” Jared cried as he handed Jensen another package. This one was actually a square box and the wrapping was perfect.

Jensen looked up at Jared. “Did you have this professionally wrapped?”

Jared turned pink and ducked his head. “Shhh…. Just open it.”

Jensen smiled and carefully opened the package, appreciating the minimalist approach to tape. When he opened the box his eyes filled with tears. “Jared…”

Jared had taken every on-set Christmas photo they’d taken over the years and had them professionally matted and then mounted into a large frame. In the center was a picture they’d had taken over the summer with them and the three kids. It was a professional shot of them as a family and Jensen loved how it had turned out.

Jared sat next to Jensen and leaned into him. “Thirteen years of us.”

“I love it, Jared.” Jensen whispered. He already knew exactly where he wanted to hang it. It would go in a place of prominence because this was their home now.

Jared took the frame and moved it to the other couch, carefully propping it there. He then turned around and handed a much smaller box to Jensen. 

“Last one.” Jared said with a smile.

The box wasn’t wrapped. It just had a simple bow on top of it. Jensen lifted the cover and just stared at the contents. “Jared…”

Jared slid his hand onto Jensen’s thigh. “I had it replicated with obviously much finer materials… but they never made it right before… the end… and I had to… to make it right.”

Jensen lifted the Samulet from the box and noted the fine craftsmanship of the heavy pendant. “Jared… this is beautiful. I couldn’t believe they never… not even at the end…”

Jensen leaned over and kissed Jared. The kiss was deep but slow and gentle, full of love. 

As they broke apart, Jared laid his head on Jensen’s shoulder. “I was so mad when they had Dean throw that away. I fell in love with you when you were wearing it. Then it was gone… and you moved out our house and then we got married to the girls… and things never truly felt right again. For me.”

Jensen wrapped his arms around Jared. “I felt the same way. I tried to be flippant about it in interviews, but it always bothered me. I absolutely love it, Jared.”

The two men held each other for a while, letting the peace of being together and happy wash over them. 

Finally Jensen spoke. “You ready for your present?” 

Jared sat up with a big smile. “Yes!”

Jensen laughed and stood. “Follow me.”

Jensen led Jared into the basement of their house and into their theater area. “Have a seat.”

Jared sat on the love seat and waited for Jensen to join him. Jensen took a thumb drive out of a small box he had set near the big screen TV mounted to the wall. He turned around and smiled at Jared.

“In honor of our first Christmas together… I give you this.” Jensen held the thumb drive up with a triumphant grin.

Jared’s smile faltered. “It’s our 14th Christmas together, Jensen.”

Jensen arched his eyebrow. “Oh really? Interesting.” 

With a smile, he inserted the thumb drive into the TV, grabbed the remote and went to join Jared on the love seat.

Jared’s demeanor had flattened a bit. Jensen pulled Jared against him after he sat and kissed his cheek. “I love you, Jay.”

Jared smiled and twined his fingers with Jensen’s. “Love you, too.”

Jensen gave Jared a proper kiss and then whispered. “Now watch.”

Jensen opened the video file on the thumb drive and leaned back with Jared in his arms.

An image of Jensen smiling into the camera on his laptop appeared on the TV. 

_“Hi.” Jensen stated as he adjusted the angle of the camera. “Merry Christmas, Jared. It’s our first Christmas together. Now, I know what you’re going to say. It’s really our 14th Christmas together… and I agree with you.”_

_Jensen smiled into the camera. “So, my gift to you this year is… my heart, my love. Forever. You’ve had those for so long, but you didn’t really know that until earlier this year. All these years, I’ve loved you and I hope what comes next will show you just how deep that love is. Merry Christmas, baby.”_

As Jared had listened to Jensen talk, he snuggled closer and closer to him. When the screen went briefly dark, Jared grabbed Jensen's hand.

“Jensen…” Jared whispered.

“Shhh… just wait.” Jensen whispered back.

_Suddenly a video of Jared during the shooting of Season One of Supernatural appeared. In it, Jared was making faces at Jensen, who could be heard laughing in the background._

_Jared stuck his tongue out and Jensen’s muffled voice was audible: “Nice face, Big J. Hope it freezes like that.”_

_A young Jared laughed and said, “You know you love me, Jen.”_

_“Yeah, right.” Jensen’s voice scoffed._

_Young Jared made a pouty face. “How can you not love me when I love you so much?”_

_Jensen sighed from behind the camera. “Jay…”_

_“Say it.” Young Jared demanded._

_The camera tilted and the video wobbled before Jensen refocused it._

_Young Jared looked incensed. “Don’t flip me off when I tell you I love you. Say it back!”_

_Jensen mumbled something as the camera shook again before finding Jared in the frame once again._

_“I didn’t hear you.” Young Jared teased. “C’mon Jen…”_

_“I love you.” Jensen’s voice was clear and audible this time. Jared’s face brightened._

_“See… that wasn’t so hard, was it?”_

_The video faded into a slide that said “The First Time I Told You I Loved You”._

Jared was as close as he could get to Jensen on the love seat without actually being in his lap, so he clutched at Jensen’s hand. “Oh my god, Jensen…”

Jensen kissed Jared’s temple and whispered, “Keep watching.”

 _As the slide faded out, a slide show of pictures Jensen had taken of Jared during their first season began flashing on the screen, accompanied by music._

Jared recognized the opening to “You’re All I Want for Christmas”. He gasped when it wasn’t Bing Crosby but rather Jensen who was singing the song.

Jared was mesmerized by the photos and videos Jensen had compiled. Many of them he hadn’t even known that Jensen was taking. As Season One became Season Two, Jared felt tears gather in the corners of his eyes. When images and videos from Season Three began playing, Jensen could be heard singing “White Christmas.”

Year after year, the images and videos kept coming. Jensen’s beautiful voice filled the room. After “White Christmas”, he’d recorded an acoustic and slower, more romantic version of “All I Want for Christmas Is You”, followed by a haunting rendition of “Love is Christmas” with Jason Manns on backup vocals. As Season Ten images and videos segued into Season Eleven and beyond, Jensen’s pure tenor voice rang out, singing “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm”.

When the song was over, the video ended with a recent clip Jensen had taken of them. It started with Jared sleeping and Jensen filming himself talking to the camera. 

_“I’m about to wake you up.” Jensen said with a smile as he faced the camera. He turned his phone and continued recording. Softly he whispered, “Look how beautiful you are in sleep, Jay.”_

_The video zoomed in on Jared’s peaceful face. Suddenly the video shook and then flipped, showing Jensen’s face next to Jared._

_“Jared,” Jensen whispered. “Jared…”_

_Jared smiled and slowly opened his eyes in the video. “Hey.”_

_Jensen smiled at the camera and then kissed Jared softly. “Hey.”_

_Jared rolled onto his back and Jensen slid in next to him, still filming._

_Jared smiled and looked into the camera. “What are you doing?”_

_Jensen looked into the camera and smiled, too. “Recording this moment.”_

_Jared asked, “What’s so special about this moment?”_

_Jensen turned his head and looked into Jared’s eyes. “We’re here, together.” After a pause, Jensen continued. “And I love you.”_

_Jared broke into a smile, beautifully captured by Jensen’s camera. “I love you, too.”_

_In the video, Jared kissed Jensen. As the kiss deepened, Jensen dropped his phone and there was nothing but the sound of their kissing growing increasingly passionate. Jensen had added a caption, “I think you know what comes next…”_

Suddenly the screen froze and the image was replaced with Jensen looking into his computer camera again.

_Jensen said, “So… that’s it. That’s our story, Jay. Thirteen years… thirteen Christmases together. And now this one is number 14. I’ve loved you for so long. I’ve watched you grow into the most beautiful person I know. I’ve watched you triumph and I’ve watched you struggle. I’ve always been by your side and I promise you – I will always be right where I know I am right now… sitting next to you, holding you close. By your side. Merry Christmas, baby.”_

When the video ended, Jared turned and wrapped his arms around Jensen, holding him tight. He was beyond words. Jensen could feel Jared’s tears on his neck. He knew they were tears of happiness because his eyes were swimming, too.

A while later, a more composed Jared softly kissed Jensen. Smiling he said, “Hands down, the best Christmas present ever, Jensen. I can’t believe you still have those old videos and pictures. Our whole history together. It’s amazing Jensen. And the songs… you know how much I love your voice. When did you even have time to record those?”

Jensen brought Jared’s hand to his lips and kissed it softly. “Remember all those times Jason and I went golfing without you?”

Jared nodded in response.

“Well, we weren’t golfing… we were doing the arrangements and recording the songs.”

Jared kissed Jensen and pulled him into a hug. “The whole things was… incredible. Thank you.”

Jensen framed Jared’s face gently. “I love you, Jared.”

Jared smiled as he turned his head to kiss Jensen’s wrist. “I love you, too, Jen. So much.”

Jensen lowered his hands and pushed himself up off the love seat. He extended his hand to Jared, who took it and rose to stand next to him.

“How do you feel about steak?” Jensen asked as he pulled Jared into a hug.

“I’m for it!” Jared said as he kissed Jensen’s neck.

Jensen stepped out of the hug and grabbed Jared’s hand. “Great. We have reservations for noon, so let’s get a move on.”

Jared beamed at his lover. “It’s like you know me.”

Jensen smiled up at Jared, all of his love shining in his eyes. “Yeah. It’s a little bit like that, isn’t it.”


End file.
